Doctor Tim - The Mystery of the Guest in Number Two

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Harold’s Old Time Radio – “Doctor Tim: The Mystery of the Guest in Number Two” (May 9, 2026)

Episode Overview

In this Golden Age of Radio drama, Dr. Tim—medic and detective rolled into one—faces a challenging case that pulls together mystery, danger, and a lesson about the marvels of medical science. The thrilling episode centers on a suspicious new guest, “Mr. Jones,” in room number two at Dr. Tim’s boarding house, and quickly escalates into a life-and-death situation involving a shooting, rare rocks, and the hunt for uranium during a tense time in America’s scientific history. Helping Dr. Tim are two plucky youths, Jill and Sandy, whose inquisitiveness and quick thinking prove essential.

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Key Discussion Points & Story Beats

Suspicion Arises: The Arrival of Mr. Jones

• [00:32] Dr. Tim introduces the case, noting the challenge of balancing his medical and detective work.
• [01:05] Jill remarks on the oddness of their mysterious guest in number two, “the doggonedest guy.”
• [01:21] Sandy thinks Mr. Jones might be a “criminal in hiding,” kicking off the kids’ suspicions.
• Discussion of Mr. Jones’ real name and the anomaly of his suitcases all being marked “RWM.”
• Dr. Tim scolds the kids for snooping:
  • “None of our business, kids. … confine your detective work to your own premises and not in other people’s houses, right?” (Dr. Tim, 01:44)

A Routine Disrupted & an Education about Blood

• [02:12–02:55] Weeks pass uneventfully until Jill approaches Dr. Tim with illness.
• Dr. Tim uses Jill’s visit to explain blood banks and research:
  • “Blood’s a pretty useful thing. … And each one of those parts or fractions of the blood can be separated from the other parts. And these are used to cure people?” (Dr. Tim, 02:39–02:59)

The Crisis: A Violent Incident

• [04:00–04:23] Sandy describes seeing Jones entering the boarding house at gunpoint.
• Suddenly, a shot rings out upstairs.
  • “It wasn’t until I heard a crash of glass and saw a figure hurdle past my window and streak it over the back fence and up the alley that I could move.” (Dr. Tim, 04:23)
• Dr. Tim, Sandy, and Jill find Jones gravely wounded, with blood pooling on the floor.

Medical Emergency & Blood Transfusion

• [05:19–06:36] Dr. Tim, assisted by Jill and Sandy, performs a crucial blood transfusion, highlighting the importance and science of matching blood types.
  • “Use the wrong kind of blood and it would kill him. Good thing I have whole blood on hand for those experiments. He wouldn’t last until they could get some.” (Dr. Tim, 06:23)
• The episode pays homage to the life-saving power of blood transfusions and the bravery of helpers in a crisis.

Aftermath, Investigation, and Measles

• [07:59] Jill is diagnosed with measles and sent to bed—reluctantly!
  • “As your doctor, madam, I order you to bed. You have measles.” (Dr. Tim, 08:04)
• Dr. Tim explains “immune serum globulin,” a blood-derived treatment used to protect Sandy from measles.
  • “It’s going to keep you from catching Jill’s measles. … It works wonders to keep people from getting measles from other people.” (Dr. Tim, 08:41 / 09:08)

Rocks, Clues, and the Real Mystery

• [09:24] Sandy and Dr. Tim discuss the odd contents of Mr. Jones’s suitcases: labeled rocks.
• [10:06] Dr. Tim’s late-night investigation reveals rocks organized by cryptic codes.
• Jill’s offhand remark about prospectors using “electric machines” (Geiger counters) prompts Dr. Tim’s realization.
  • “What a dope I’d been. It took two kids to tell me what I should have seen from the very first moment.” (Dr. Tim, 11:00)

Resolution: Uranium, G-Men, and Justice

• [12:00–14:00] The case is turned over to the FBI.
  • Jones was prospecting for uranium—vital for atomic energy research—for the government.
• The shooter wanted Jones’ uranium map and information.
• Thanks to the teamwork of Dr. Tim, Sandy, and Jill, the crime is cracked, and the uranium find aids America’s energy needs.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• “Being a combination of doctor and detective gets pretty rugged sometimes.”
  – Dr. Tim ([00:32])

• “None of our business, kids. Boy, your mother’d skin you alive, Jill, if she knew you were prying into the luggage of a paying customer.”
  – Dr. Tim ([01:44])

• “You never know until it’s too late.”
  – Dr. Tim reflecting before the attack ([02:12])

• “Blood’s a pretty useful thing. … each one of those parts or fractions of the blood can be separated from the other parts.”
  – Dr. Tim ([02:56])

• “Meantime, the mysterious Mr. Jones was in the hands of God and a doctor. I hoped I was a good doctor.”
  – Dr. Tim ([05:56])

• “As your doctor, madam, I order you to bed. You have measles.”
  – Dr. Tim ([08:04])

• “It works wonders to keep people from getting measles from other people.”
  – Dr. Tim ([09:08])

• “Why would anybody shoot a man for collecting rocks unless … well, unless they were gold or something.”
  – Dr. Tim ([09:38])

• “What a dope I’d been. It took two kids to tell me what I should have seen from the very first moment.”
  – Dr. Tim ([10:59])

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Key Segments & Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment | Summary | |-----------|------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------| | 00:32 | Episode Intro/Set-Up | Dr. Tim as doctor/detective, "Mr. Jones" arrives. | | 02:32 | Blood Laboratory Lesson | Jill and Sandy learn about blood banks and research. | | 04:23 | Shooting Occurs | Mr. Jones is attacked; Dr. Tim and kids race to help. | | 05:19 | Blood Transfusion | Life-saving science in action. | | 08:01 | Jill Sent to Bed with Measles | Both suspense and a medical lesson. | | 08:41 | Immune Serum Globulin | Dr. Tim explains modern medicine to the kids. | | 10:06 | Rocks Revealed; Dr. Tim Investigates | The real secret behind Jones’s rocks arises. | | 11:00 | Jill’s Clue Breaks the Case | Uranium prospecting, G-men get involved. | | 12:00–14:00| Resolution | Case solved, uranium mine secured for the government. |

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Tone & Style

The episode reflects the earnestness, curiosity, and wholesome pedagogical style of classic children's radio, blending medical science with a gentle mystery. Dr. Tim is both avuncular and authoritative. The kids’ banter is lighthearted, occasionally cheeky, and the show consistently delivers real-life lessons through engaging drama.

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Conclusion

“The Mystery of the Guest in Number Two” is a charming, suspenseful old-time radio adventure that exemplifies the values and excitement of its era. Combining detective work, medical drama, and a dash of atomic-age intrigue, it celebrates the power of teamwork, the wonders of scientific discovery, and the importance of staying curious—reminding audiences both young and old why the family once gathered around the radio together.

Transcript

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[Dr. Tim]

This is Dr. Tim, detective to bring you by transcription. The mystery of the guest in number two. Being a combination of doctor and detective gets pretty rugged sometimes. And this was one of those times. All right. The guest in number two, we called him Jill, that's my landlady's daughter, first called him to my attention.

[Jill]

Mumsy friendly number two. You know the room up on the second floor to the dog gondice guy.

[Dr. Tim]

I remember you thought I was the dog gondice guy when I moved in here and set up a laboratory for crime detection and medical work.

[Jill]

Well, but Sandy thinks so too. Don't you, Sandy?

[Sandy]

Yeah, I think maybe he's a criminal in hiding.

[Dr. Tim]

I'm afraid you kids have developed unnatural suspicions from helping me out with some of my cases.

[Sandy]

Well, anybody that says his name is Jones.

[Dr. Tim]

Now look, some people really are named Jones. Several hundred thousand of them, I presume.

[Jill]

And yeah, but if that's his name, then why are all his suitcases marked with rwm?

[Sandy]

Sure, every one of them stamped in gold letters?

[Dr. Tim]

None of our business, kids. Boy, your mother'd skin you alive, Jill, if she knew you were prying into the luggage of a paying customer. And as for you, Master Sandy, it might be smart for you to confine your detective work to your own premises and not in other people's houses, right?

[Jill]

Right.

[Sandy]

Oh, okay, I guess. But I still think that it's all.

[Dr. Tim]

I wish now I'd paid more attention to Sandy and Jill in the matter of the strange. But you never know until it's too late. Anyway, nothing happened to break the routine of my laboratory week for a couple of weeks. Then late one afternoon just before dinner time, I was cleaning up my laundry.

[Jill]

Dr. Tim, you don't mean those jars are full of real blood? Blood from people?

[Dr. Tim]

Exactly that, Jill.

[Sandy]

What do you do with it?

[Dr. Tim]

Oh, a lot of things. Blood's a pretty useful thing. A lot more so than most people realize. Where you get it from the bank, Jill, the blood bank. And that's just what it actually is. All over the country. These banks keep blood for use whenever and wherever it's needed.

[Sandy]

Sure, but what do you do with it?

[Dr. Tim]

Well, that's a long story, Sandy, but it amounts to this. For years, doctors have known that blood isn't just one thing. It's lots and lots of things. And each one of those parts or fractions of the blood can be separated from the other parts. And these are used to cure people? I'm trying to find some new blood parts or some new uses for the old ones. That's why there's always blood samples in the laboratory refrigerator. Catch. Sure. Well, I'm all cleaned up here at last. Now, what's the news?

[Jill]

Mom said I'd better come up and see you. A professional visit, she called it. I don't feel so good today.

[Dr. Tim]

Symptoms?

[Jill]

Well, I've been very sick of my stomach and my absolute. My eyes hurt and I feel all kind of worn out.

[Sandy]

Personally, I think she's just trying to get out of doing homework tonight.

[Jill]

I am not.

[Dr. Tim]

Well, let me take a look. Jill, stick out your tongue. Uh huh. Say ah.

[Jill]

Ah.

[Dr. Tim]

Sandy?

[Sandy]

Yes, Dr. Tim?

[Dr. Tim]

Hand me that thermometer, will you? Sure. Thanks. I'll keep it in your mouth for a while, Joe. Now, Dr. Tim. Yes?

[Sandy]

You know that guy Jones upstairs?

[Dr. Tim]

Oh, I wouldn't say I know him, Sandy. We've spoken in the hall.

[Sandy]

Well, I know you told us to lay off, but the dog honest thing happened just a few minutes ago while I was waiting by the stairs for Jill.

[Dr. Tim]

Ah, the curse of an overactive imagination. Go on.

[Sandy]

Anyway, he came in with this other man right behind him. And Dr. Tim, I'd swear that other guy had a gun in his overcoat pocket, was pushing it right up against this Jones guy's back.

[Jill]

They didn't see me.

[Dr. Tim]

I didn't have time to laugh because just at that moment, from right overhead came the sound of a fight and then something else. A shot. For a moment we stood there paralyzed. It wasn't until I heard a crash of glass and saw a figure hurdle past my window and streak it over the back fence and up the alley that I could move. And by the time that we reached the upstairs room, it looked as if we'd arrived too late. The mysterious Mr. Jones was lying on the floor with a pool of blood beside him. He'd been shot. Shot right through the back. Looking back on it afterwards, I don't know what I'd have done without those kids. There wasn't anybody else in the house. And if I ever needed six hands, I needed them. Then, sick as she was. Jill just gulped and said, holy gee, is he.

[Jill]

Is he dead?

[Dr. Tim]

He wasn't quite, but it was a matter of moments. Gunshot wounds can be pretty nasty where there's loss of blood. You always have shock to contend with. And shock can be mighty serious in itself. Sandy didn't have to be told. In a flash he was downstairs and back with my medical bag. One word to Jill, the word police sent her flying to a telephone and I knew an ambulance and help would be on the way at once. Meantime, the mysterious Mr. Jones was in the hands of God and a doctor. I hoped I was a good doctor. I remember asking God to help me out on that score. Jones was dying fast. Then I remembered that blood in my laboratory. Downstairs in the lab, Jill and I worked as we'd never worked before, while Sandy kept watch upstairs over the wounded man. We didn't talk much, Jill and I. Just a few quiet questions and answers.

[Jill]

Here's the microscope slide, doctor.

[Dr. Tim]

Jim.

[Jill]

Are you gonna give him a transfusion?

[Dr. Tim]

Yes. Have to check his type of blood first with a microscope. Use the wrong kind of blood and it would kill him. Good thing I have whole blood on hand for those experiments. He wouldn't last until they could get some. Here. Now that solution, please.

[Jill]

Yes.

[Dr. Tim]

Ah, this one seems to match his blood. Quick, hand me that bottle. Mark. Typo. Now go to the sterilizer. Twenty minutes later, the ambulance arrived. Two squad cars and a dozen or so police were scouring the neighborhood for some trace of the man who had tried to murder the mysterious Mr. Jones. And as for Jones, that blood had saved his life, had replaced the vital fluid, the blood cells and all the other chemical elements so necessary to keeping the life of a man going. Jones was still unconscious, of course, and would be for a long time. Yet his condition was so serious that he couldn't even be moved to a hospital. It would have meant sure death from more loss of blood and shock. The case was out of my hands now, but I'd done my best and I hope my best was good enough. I sank down weekly in a chair in my laboratory. And it wasn't until I noticed Sandy and Jill big eyed and bursting with excitement. But I remembered the other side of the affair. Who had shot Jones and why. Maybe I could help there too. But one look at Jill and I knew her heart was going to be broken, for this was one case where she was going to be out of the running. I spoke quietly. Jill.

[Jill]

Yes, Dr. Tim?

[Dr. Tim]

You're going to bed.

[Jill]

Oh, Dr. Tim.

[Dr. Tim]

Hate to do it to you, old Girl, but you remember that little examination we were making? Well, yes, but as your doctor, madam, I order you to bed. You have measles. A few minutes later, the house had two bed patients. One, a very sad young lady with measles. The other a man nobody knew who had almost been murdered. A third patient, Sandy, was standing up bravely under a light while I stood over him with a hypodermic syringe.

[Sandy]

What's the stuff, Doc?

[Dr. Tim]

Well, believe it or not, Sandy, it comes from blood too. It's going to keep you from catching Jill's measles. Or at least it'll make certain that you have a very light case and protect you for a long time afterwards. What do you call it? Immune serum Globulin. Let's skip that one, huh? Well, you see, this stuff is one of those blood parts fractions I was telling you about. When you take blood from people who have had measles and separate it into its parts, this globulin.

[Sandy]

Hey, how do you spell that one?

[Dr. Tim]

Well, G, L, O, B, U, L, I, N. It works wonders to keep people from getting measles from other people.

[Sandy]

I'll take your word for it, doc. Go ahead and shoot.

[Dr. Tim]

Okay.

[Sandy]

I didn't even feel it. Am I safe now?

[Dr. Tim]

Perfectly safe. Dr. Tim. Yes?

[Sandy]

You know, I've been watching that guy Jones, the one who was shot. I can tell you something about him. What he looney? You know what he does?

[Dr. Tim]

No.

[Sandy]

He collects rocks, believe it or not. Just common old rocks.

[Dr. Tim]

Well, that's a harmless pastime.

[Sandy]

Sure got him in a mess of trouble.

[Dr. Tim]

Maybe you've got a point there, Sandy. But why would anybody shoot a man for collecting rocks unless. Well, unless they were gold or something.

[Sandy]

Whoever shot him was after those rocks, all right. When you left me alone with Mr. Jones in the room upstairs, I sort of. Well, sort of noticed that several of his suitcases were been busted open. There were rocks with labels on them scattered all over the room. I'd sure like to know why.

[Dr. Tim]

It must have been midnight when I decided I couldn't get to sleep and might as well do a little looking around. After what we'd all been through, I wanted to forget the mystery and relax. The police could carry on from here, but I couldn't. So I went up the stairs to where the mysterious Mr. Jones hovered between life and death. I motioned the nurse to be silent and carefully examined the room. Sandy was right. There was nothing of interest except the rocks. There were hundreds of them, all sizes and all shapes and all neatly labeled with cryptic Little stickers which said Northwest 100A or South G8, referring no doubt to some location on a map where they had been gathered. I took a couple with me to examine at leisure in the laboratory and stood downstairs when I noticed a light coming from under the door to Jill's room.

[Jill]

Come in.

[Dr. Tim]

Well, sort of late for a sick girl to be reading, isn't it?

[Jill]

Oh, honest, I've been asleep.

[Dr. Tim]

Well, it's lights out now. Doctor's orders.

[Jill]

Okay, doctor, how's Mr. Jones? Is he gonna live?

[Dr. Tim]

I wish I could tell you, Jill. The use of blood has given him a chance. First the transfusion, then later, maybe you'll need plasma.

[Jill]

What's that?

[Dr. Tim]

Oh, plasma is another part of blood, Jill. It can be stored indefinitely and won't spoil as quickly as whole blood. You use it when you don't need the red cells of the blood, just the liquid part.

[Jill]

Gee, bloody sure. Wonderful stuff.

[Dr. Tim]

Mm.

[Jill]

Krista. Tim, what are you doing with those rocks in your hands?

[Sandy]

Oh, these?

[Dr. Tim]

Well, they're from Mr. Jones room. Seems to be a lot of them up there.

[Jill]

Are they anything special?

[Dr. Tim]

I don't know, Jill. Sandy mentioned them, and I thought she was.

[Jill]

I bet I know what they are. I was reading in the paper tonight. Everybody got looking for it.

[Dr. Tim]

For what?

[Jill]

Well, gosh, I forget what you call it, but prospectors go out with some kind of electric machines and they.

[Dr. Tim]

I just stood there with my mouth hanging open. What a dope I'd been. It took two kids to tell me what I should have seen from the very first moment. Without even saying good night to Jill, I dashed down the stairs, picked up the telephone and called the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This was a case for the G Men. It took a couple of weeks before the case was cleared up. My hunch, thanks to the work of Sandy and Jill, had been right. Jones had been prospecting for uranium, the vital mineral for atomic energy and research. Jones told us the whole story later. How he was prospecting for the government, which badly needed new supplies of uranium. How he'd been forced at the point of a gun to give up his map and then brutally shot. The T men caught the man all right, but never gave out the whole story of who was behind the robbery and the attempted murder. But I wasn't anyone working for. For the good of this country. Jones had really found uranium too. And the mine is being worked today, thanks to Sandy, to Jill, and to a mysterious substance known for thousands and thousands of years as blood. This is Dr. Tim, detective, saying so long until next week at this same time when Sandy, Jill and I will dip into my case book and bring out a brand new transcribed story, the Mystery of the man from Trouble Creek.

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